A state of mind. An elusive dream. Hard-fought with many casualties. Agreed on. Waiting to happen. Partially achieved. Already here.

The progress of peace, it seems, is a matter of perceptions.

“We have a cause to fight. We don’t just enjoy being in the military, we have decided to take up arms to defend our children,” says Captain Rebecca Nya Piuudup in opposition-controlled Mogok in Greater Jonglei.

The year is 2006, the place is Liberia, West Africa. A United Nations peacekeeping mission with a mandate that includes capacity building is carrying out the recruitment of corrections officers.